Site Mobile Navigation

With Eye on Williams, Nets to Acquire Johnson

A dizzying and expensive campaign to revitalize the Nets’ identity moved into overdrive Monday, when the franchise secured a trade for Joe Johnson, the Atlanta Hawks’ six-time All-Star.

The deal cannot become official until July 11, after the N.B.A.’s annual moratorium, and the teams are prohibited from commenting until then. The parameters of the deal, which will send five minor players to Atlanta, were confirmed by two people briefed on the talks.

The Nets completed the trade just as they were preparing to meet with Deron Williams, their star point guard, to sell him on a future in Brooklyn. Williams, a free agent, is also being courted by the Dallas Mavericks, who made their pitch earlier in the day. Both meetings were in New York.

The trade for Johnson is not contingent on Williams’s staying, nor will it necessarily guarantee his return. But Williams was apprised of the talks and supported the move, according to a person who has spoken with him.

The Nets had hoped to pair Williams with Dwight Howard, the Orlando Magic star, who has lobbied for a trade to Brooklyn. But the teams never found the right deal, and the trade for Johnson probably closes that door.

Photo

In Joe Johnson, left, the Nets are acquiring an elite swingman, along with four years of a contract that will cost $89.3 million.

For the Hawks, the trade is little more than a salary dump — a means to unload the four years and $89.3 million left on Johnson’s unwieldy contract. The players heading to Atlanta are all on one-year deals, and of minimal value.

Stevenson, a free agent, agreed to a sign-and-trade deal to make the trade work under the N.B.A.’s complicated salary-cap rules. Houston’s draft pick is lottery-protected through 2016. If the pick has not been conveyed by then, it converts to a second-round pick in 2017.

The deal was first reported by NetsDaily.com and The Star-Ledger of Newark.

The trade for Johnson came a day after the Nets agreed on a four-year, $40 million contract with Gerald Wallace, their defensive-minded small forward. If Deron Williams re-signs for his maximum amount ($17.2 million), the Nets will have about $44 million tied up in three players next season, and they will effectively be locked into that core for the next four years.

The Nets still plan to sign their other top free agents — Brook Lopez, Kris Humphries and Gerald Green — which will push them well past the $58 million cap for 2012-13. (The cap will not be an issue in re-signing Lopez and Humphries, because both have “Bird” rights.)

The Nets technically never dropped below the cap before making the Johnson trade, so they will retain all their cap exceptions, including the midlevel ($5 million) and the biannual ($1.96 million). They also preserved their two trade exceptions, worth $3 million and $1 million, which can be used in future trades.

Photo

Steve Nash met with the Nets on Monday and could fill their vacancy at point guard if Deron Williams departs for Dallas.Credit
Barton Silverman/The New York Times

One likely target with the midlevel exception is Mirza Teletovic, a 6-foot-9 forward from Bosnia who played in Spain last season. Teletovic, who has the same agent as Williams, has been on the Nets’ radar.

The Nets also met on Monday with Steve Nash, who could fill the point-guard vacancy if Williams departs for Dallas. Conversely, Nash could land in Dallas if Williams chooses Brooklyn. Williams is expected to decide within the next two days. Nash is also being pursued by the Toronto Raptors and the Knicks.

The Nets are offering Williams a five-year, $100 million deal — the maximum allowed, and one year and $25 million more than Dallas can. The Mavericks’ pitch will focus on the benefits of playing alongside Dirk Nowitzki, a likely Hall of Famer, who led Dallas to a championship 13 months ago. The Nets will counter with the allure of playing in Brooklyn, a short drive from Madison Avenue.

An error has occurred. Please try again later.

You are already subscribed to this email.

Money and marketing aside, the question for Williams is, which team offers a better chance to contend in the long term?

The Nets surely enhanced their position by acquiring Johnson, a 6-foot-8, highly skilled swingman who averaged 18.8 points, 3.9 assists and 3.7 rebounds while shooting .454 from the field and .388 from 3-point range last season for the Hawks. Johnson helped revive the Hawks starting in 2005 after becoming a breakout star alongside Nash with the Phoenix Suns.

But Johnson comes at a high price. His six-year, $124 million contract was deemed an albatross, and among the worst in the league, the moment it was signed in 2010. Until Monday, it was considered virtually untradeable. Johnson will make nearly $25 million in 2015-16, when he will be 34.

The Hawks were also busy Monday, reportedly agreeing to a second trade that would send Marvin Williams to the Utah Jazz for Devin Harris. Seventeen months ago, the Nets sent Harris to Utah in the deal that brought Williams to New Jersey.

A version of this article appears in print on July 3, 2012, on Page B9 of the New York edition with the headline: With Eye on Williams, Nets to Acquire Johnson. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe